My Turkey Taco Salad is a super simple entrée salad with the protein we need to hold on to our muscles in perimenopause and menopause. It also includes a bunch of nutrient-packed veggies that provide antioxidants to help prevent the chronic inflammation that contributes to the development of heart disease. Heart disease is a big concern in perimenopause and menopause when our heart health protective estrogen drops.
Hormone Balancing Superfood: Turkey
Key ingredients for this recipe
Ground turkey breast – I prefer the taste and consistency of turkey breast. It is also lower in animal fat compared to dark meat ground turkey.
Purple cabbage – I’m tucking in one of those cruciferous veggies right here. Beautiful deep purple color equals antioxidants, particularly anthocyanins, which are beneficial plant compounds that may reduce your risk of heart disease.
Cumin – including this ground seed frequently in your diet may help with blood sugar control. Hormonal shifts in perimenopause may cause blood sugar levels to get out of control leading to pre-diabetes.
Other options for Turkey Taco Salad
This is currently our favorite taco salad recipe. I’ll definitely have fun switching up some of the ingredients depending on what I have in the fridge or what I have a taste craving for.
Try making this healthy taco salad with ground chicken. It’s another type of ground poultry that will work just as well.
Sub shaved Brussels sprouts, green cabbage, or Napa cabbage for the purple cabbage. These are all cruciferous vegetables that can stand in.
Alternative greens. Getting leafy greens at least 2 times a day is a healthy habit I encourage for my clients. You can’t go wrong by using all arugula, baby kale, or spinach. Choose your current favorite.
Up the protein. Scoop a tablespoon or 2 of full fat Greek yogurt on top of the salad to add a few grams of protein plus gut friendly probiotics.
Serving Suggestions
Maybe you plan to prep the ingredients ahead of time to use Turkey Taco Salad for dinners throughout the week or lunches. I recommend storing the turkey and black bean mixture as well as the dressing on the side. Combine them with the salad immediately before you are ready to eat. You can even warm up the turkey and black beans if you don’t care for eating them at room temp. Microwave for 45 seconds at 50% power or cook 2-3 minutes in a pan.
Looking for other entree salads to add to your rotation? Try these:
Salmon Salad with Kelp Noodles
If you make this recipe let us see! Tag @freshbalancenutrition and #freshbalancenutrition
Turkey Taco Salad with Cilantro Dressing
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound ground turkey
- ½ cup onion, chopped
- 2 tablespoons taco seasoning
- 1 14 1/2- ounce can black beans, rinsed & drained
- 5 ounces mixed greens
- 1 red pepper, chopped
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
- 1 cup purple cabbage, finely shredded
- 6 radishes, thinly sliced
- 1 sweet potato, cooked, cubed
- 2 green onion, chopped
dressing:
- juice of 1 lime
- ½ jalapeño pepper, seeded and deveined, sliced
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 1 clove garlic, sliced
- ½ cup cilantro, chopped
- ¼ cup avocado oil
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- Heat olive oil in a large pan. Add onion and cook 4 minutes until softened.
- Add turkey, cook 10 minutes until cooked through. Stir in black beans for 3 minutes to warm.
- Toss mixed greens, red pepper, cherry tomatoes, cabbage, radishes, sweet potato, and green onion in a large salad bowl.
- Top each portion with turkey and bean mixture. Serve with cilantro dressing.
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